maladjusted

[ mal-uh-juhs-tid ]

adjective

1. badly or unsatisfactorily adjusted, adjusted, especially in relationship to one's social circumstances, environment, etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of maladjusted¹

First recorded in 1880–85; mal- + adjusted

Example Sentences

The school was set up in 1966 for "maladjusted" boys - those regarded as troublemakers who, very often, had difficult home lives.

From BBC

From the Western perspective, East Asians might appear excessively polite in their attention to social ties or could seem disengaged or even depressed or maladjusted in their ambivalence toward self-promotion and initiative.

From Scientific American

Amer rounds out details drawn from interviews with Boulahcen’s family and friends with her own psychological coloring, striving to give shape to the inner life of a maladjusted immigrant.

From New York Times

They need voters to be maladjusted miscreants, the kind of people who think that someone like Trump or Tucker Carlson is worth following.

From Salon

I’m a big believer in the power of reading, but there are some people who are so maladjusted that not even great literature can help them.

From New York Times